Is Intellect an Albatross?
Arianna Huffington is described by her friend and author Sugar Rautbord [in Vanity Fair] as “probably one of the most intellectually seductive human beings on the face of the planet. She has such a powerful brain, and she exudes an intellectuality that is almost sexual.”
Does that sort of exceptional mind have potential negative consequences, particularly for women?
In her controversial book Are Men Necessary? Maureen Dowd claims “men fear a woman who uses her critical faculties.” She wrote the supposed “threat” to men is shown by research studies indicating lowered expectations for marriage with increasing intelligence of women.
But those studies lead to faulty conclusions, according to a Women’s eNews article: “…The more education a woman has, the more likely she is to marry.”
But there are other issues beside relationships for highly intelligent women.
Sally M. Reis, Ph.D. of The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented, notes in an article that high potential and multiple interests, multipotentiality, can benefit many women, but others “often cannot find their niche, make it on their own, or choose a vocational path…
> Continued in article Is Intellect an Albatross?
